A Jinchuriki's Fate
by Stephen2462
Summary: The word Jinchuriki means "the power of human sacrifice." Naruto might finally understand what that really means. NaruHina all the way. Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. SPOILERS FROM RECENT MANGA CHAPTERS. On hold.
1. Lunchtime

**Hello everyone! For reasons stated in my other fict, I have to put it on hold until the new Bleach movie comes out. Until then, I have this to keep me busy. I hope you like it!**

**(Note: I edit chapters I've already posted every now and then, so it doesn't hurt to reread them every once in a while)**

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_The gods have given us time to prepare. We must use it well._

-"Lady Knight" by Temora Pierce

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**Training Ground**

Kakashi has been teaching Naruto ninjutsu for about three months. Despite it being over four months since Sasuke killed his brother, no signs of either Sasuke or the Akatsuki had been found, so Kakashi turned his mind toward training Naruto. In order to take advantage of the blonde's large reservoir of chakra, the silver-haired shinobi had decided that teaching him a variety of techniques to utilize it would give his fighting skills a boost. Naruto was annoyed by his sensei's assessment of his skills. He knew his teacher was correct, but he would never admit it.

Over the course of their training, Kakashi felt like the blonde absorbed _most_ of the jutsu he was taught.

Kakashi and Naruto were at one of the old training grounds, attempting to add the water dragon jutsu to his rapidly growing list of techniques. Unfortunately, Naruto was having some trouble. While it was easy for him to gather up the chakra needed to use the jutsu, he had trouble with the water-style in general, and so far, he had only accomplished in making a huge splash that soaked himself and his sensei.

"Why don't we go have lunch, Naruto?" Kakashi suggested. "You've been at it all day. We can go eat at Ichiraku if you want to."

"Yeah!" Naruto yelled in agreement. "Do you feel like paying today?"

His grin quickly withered under his sensei's glare. "Never mind." Naruto scowled. However, his grin returned almost as quickly as it had left as another idea crossed his mind.

"Race you then," the jinchuriki shouted gleefully as he sped off toward the Ichiraku ramen stand far ahead of Kakashi.

"Kids." The copy-ninja sighed. How did Naruto get so much energy? As he had grown older, he simply felt older, yet Naruto was just as energetic at age eighteen as he was when he was twelve. Kakashi instinctively winced at the obvious answer, the Kyubi was becoming a bigger influence as time passed. Grimly, he trudged after Naruto, muttering to himself.

Jiraiya's defeat by Pain had been a serious blow to everyone's morale. The fact that the toad-sage had even survived was a miracle. Jiraiya had lost, and hadn't gotten many answers from his fight, only more questions. The Sannin was thrown into the hidden village's massive lake, and left to drown. However, Tsunade, who was hiding nearby, recovered his half-dead body and took him back to Konoha.

**Hyuga Compound**

"Hinata, you have to keep the chakra output at a constant level, otherwise it will just fall apart!" Hiashi Hyuga instructed his eldest daughter.

At Hinata's insistence, her father and cousin, Hiashi and Neji were teaching her the Eight Trigrams Rotation technique. She had been at it for three weeks now, and was making steady progress. She had already mastered the individual elements of the technique: the release of chakra from several parts of her body, and the high-speed spin. She had taken a week to learn each one, a feat that was close to unprecedented. However, the ability to combine the two parts into a single motion was eluding her so far. When she did one part correctly, she would either mess up the other one, or forget it to use it all together. Hinata was beginning to lose morale. The week she had spent working on it had come and gone, and she had made little progress during it. The Hyuga felt like she had simply hit a wall she couldn't pass.

"Why don't we wave a lunch break Hiashi-sensei? " Neji suggested."It is time for lunch, after all."

Neji's suggestion caused Hinata to remember something. Her eyes widened, and she glanced at her wristwatch. Hiashi and Neji looked at her questioningly.

"I-I just rem-m-embered something." She stuttered. "I'm sup-p-post to meet Kurenai-sensei, Shiba-kun, and Kiba-kun for lunch. S-sorry for forgetting to tell you." The heiress apologized meekly.

"Very well, Hinata, we will continue your training later." Hiashi replied. That reminded Hinata of something else.

"Oh, we're also going to t-train together after we eat!"

Though it would take who knows what to get him to admit it, Neji almost sniggered behind the other two Hyuga's backs. The only thing that restrained him, was the fact that when everyone present possessed the byakugon, you never knew who might be watching.

Hiashi scratched his head absently. "Fine, just be back before sundown." He replied, this time with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

"Thank you father!" Hinata thanked him respectfully. With that, the young heiress hot footed it out of the compound.

"Is it just me, or is she stuttering less than she used to? Hiashi asked to no one in particular.

"She's growing up Hiashi-sensei." Neji replied with a grin." Most people do that sooner or later."

Neji's joking reply reminded Hiashi of something else.

"Speaking of growing up, Neji," the Hyuga elder asked offhandedly," is there anything I should know about concerning one or more of your teammates?"

Neji stared at him. "Nothing that I know of, Hiashi-sensei." He replied a little too quickly. Hiashi's eyes narrowed at his nephew's suspicious reply, but he decided to let it go for now. _Still_, Hiashi mused, _it could make thing interesting later on_.


	2. Poor Hinata

**Please review this!**

**To DarkSamuriX1999: That's good to know.**

**To rafiki20: Yeah. I thought it was about time he did.**

**(Note: I edit chapters I've already posted every now and then, so it doesn't hurt to reread them every once in a while)**

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**A Konoha Street**

Hinata couldn't believe she had forgotten! She was so caught up in training that she had completely lost track of time. _Baka_, she berated herself as she ran toward her team's usual meeting place.

"It wasn't like there was any reason for me to get caught up in training." She muttered under her breath. "I haven't even made any progress in the last week!" The Hyuga was so busy talking to herself, she even lost track of where she was going.

Her thoughts were than interrupted by a loud bark, which was followed by someone shouting at her.

"Hey Hinata," a loud, rough voice yelled at her, "wrong way!" Surprised, the heiress stopped and looked behind her. Standing about a block away was her two teammates, Shino and Kiba. As usual, Kiba was mounted on his faithful steed/dog Akamaru. Hinata still wasn't quite used to the fact that just three years ago, Akamaru was riding on Kiba.

"S-sorry about that." Hinata apologized, as her cheeks began to turn faintly red. Her day was just getting worse and worse.

"There's no need to apologize." Shino replied with his usual unemotional tone. Unlike Kiba, Shino was surprisingly good at getting her to calm down. Whenever Kiba tried to help, he'd usually end up making things worse.

"While you're at it, don't apologize for apologizing either." Shino added. Hinata, who already had her mouth open to apologize, quickly closed it.

"So," Kiba began as if nothing had happened, "where do we eat?" This confused Hinata a little.

"Um, aren't we going to wait for Kurenai-Sensei?" She asked. All _four_ of them (five if you count Akamaru) were supposed to eat lunch together, so why were her two teammates not going to wait for her?

"She said she wasn't hungry today, besides, whenever sensei tries focusing her chakra, the baby starts kicking, so she can't train either," Kiba reminded her.

"Oh, I had forgotten about that." Hinata admitted sourly. She had known, along with at least half the village, that there was some kind of relationship between her sensei and team ten's sensei, Asuma Sarutobi. Hinata didn't want to annoy Kurenai, so she never mentioned it. However, in the wake of Asuma's death at the hands of the Akatski member Hidan, Kurenai revealed she was pregnant, and that the late Asuma was the father. Hinata had actually fallen out of the tree she had been sitting in when she heard the news.

Ever since then, they had been paying close attention to Kurenai and her unborn child. The genjutsu-specialist had tried not to make a big issue of it, but her expanding waistline had begun to disrupt her normal routine more and more. She had already been upset because of her lover's death, but her pregnancy had made things even worse. Her weakened physical condition plus the distractions that came with pregnancy had rendered her incapable of going on missions. (When the disgruntled jonin had complained, Tsunade shrewdly offered a D-rank mission.)

Now that she was six months pregnant, Kurenai couldn't focus her chakra whatsoever. Hinata visited her frequently, but the young Hyuga missed her during training sessions and missions, which were put to a halt shortly after the Jonin's incapacitation.

"Anyways, where should we go eat? Personally, I feel like eating noodles, but I'm open to suggestions." Shino said.

_Hmm_, Kiba thought, _sis has been yelling at me all morning, so I could really use a good laugh_. Just then, the Inuzuka got a rather mischievous idea.

"Why don't we have ramen today?" He asked innocently. "I haven't had any in a while."

Kiba had to reach down and scratch under Akamaru's chin to keep Hinata from seeing his grin. In response to his suggestion, Hinata began to blush furiously. Unfortunately for the Hyuga, Shino was too busy studying one of his bugs to pay any attention.

"I don't see why not." He replied absently. "It's been a while for me too. I think there's a good Ramen bar near here. Why don't we go there?"

Hinata almost fainted on the spot. She knew exactly what place Shino was talking about: the Ichiraku Ramen bar. It was one of the two places you went if you were looking for a certain shinobi. (The other being his apartment) Unless her luck has changed, her day just got a hell of a lot worse.

**Ichiraku Ramen Bar**

"Hey, Naruto! I hear you've been working on water jutsu lately," said Teuchi, the chef and owner of the ramen bar, as he greeted his favorite customer.

"Yeah I have!" Naruto replied. After a moment, he asked, "Hey! How did you know that?"

"He didn't 'hear' anything." A young woman's voice said from somewhere in the back of the bar. Ayame walked into view, carrying some plates. "You're soaking wet, just like your sensei. You want the usual, I assume?"

"Uh-huh!" Naruto answered with his classic grin. Teuchi began cooking Naruto's order as his daughter took Kakashi's order.

"Here you go!" Teuchi announced a few minutes later. As soon as he gave Naruto his first bowl, the chef immediately began to prepare two more bowls. (One bowl was for Naruto and one was for Kakashi.)

"Anyone want to place any bets about how many bowls he eats today?" Teuchi muttered to himself as he stirred the bubbling broth.


	3. Talk with Ramen

**Dang, thanks for all the reviews! I can't believe how many more people have read this story already! The only letdown about it (In my opinion) is that, I released chapter 2 a day early! (Laughs at self) **

**To Herblade: I corrected it in a repost after reading your review. Also, yes, that was foreshadowing NejiTen. **

**To GraityTheWizard/DarkSamuraiX1999/vash3055: I thought so too. Nice to know people agree. **

**To Dragonman 180: Yeah, I did get the names mixed up. However, I have corrected that now. Also, the fact she hasn't learned rotation yet and Jariya surviving both are for important reasons, one of which you find out in this chapter. **

**To Chewie Cookies: I can't wait either. Ok, enough answering reviews, on to the story!**

**(Note: I edit chapters I've already posted every now and then, so it doesn't hurt to reread them.)**

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_I think that feinting is the bodies' involuntary "play dead" reflex. _– Anonymous

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**A Konoha Street**

Hinata was walking slowly behind her two teammates. She simply couldn't accept how bad her day was going. First, she (once again) made no progress with learning the Eight Trigrams rotation technique, then she forgot about her appointment with the rest of team eight, after that, she had run right past the meeting spot, and to top it off, they were going to go eat at Ichiraku Ramen bar, which happens to be where-

"Hey, look who it is, Hinata!" Kiba said, almost mockingly. Hinata, who was startled from her thoughts, looked in the direction her teammate was pointing. When she saw who he was pointing at, she definitely turned bright red.

_Just my luck. _Hinata thought. Sitting at the ramen bar was none other than her crush, Naruto. The heiress turned to Kiba with a pleading look, but when she saw the evil grin on his face, she realized he had done this on purpose. Unfortunately, it she was too late to make any complaints.

To make things worse for the Hyuga, Kiba wasn't done tormenting her just yet. The dog-boy was still recovering from his sister's morning tirade, and he still wanted to have a little more fun.

"Hey Naruto!" He called out, waving his hand in greeting. "I didn't expect to find you here!"

The Jinchuriki (after asking for more ramen) turned towards the three of them and waved back.

"Hey Kiba! Hey Shino! Hey Hinata! I guess I could say the same to you!" Naruto said loudly. He looked like he was about to say more, but Teuchi had just put another bowl in front of him. As he ate, Kiba (while half-pushing Hinata) came over and sat down. Shino quickly followed him. Unfortunately for the heiress, the only seat left was the one next to Naruto. Trembling, the poor shinobi sat down on the remaining seat. The three said hi to Kakashi, then ordered their own meals. They started catching up with what everyone else was doing. Eventually, the topic shifted to Naruto's training.

"So Naruto, have you been practicing any water jutsu lately?" Kiba asked. The blonde made a face when he heard the question.

"Yeah, it didn't work as it was supposed to, as you probably noticed." He replied. Shino's eyes narrowed (At least, I think they did.) as Naruto went on to comically describe his pitiful attempts to learn the water dragon technique.

"Hinata's been working on a new jutsu herself. Though, she hasn't had any more luck then you." The Abrane mentioned offhandedly. Hinata started sweating even more, if that is possible.

_Not you too Shino! _The Hyuga whispered under her breath. With both of her teammates torturing her, there was no way she would survive lunch. Naruto, on the other hand, looked almost as interested in the conversation as he was with the ramen in front of him (which is saying something).

"Really, Hinata?" The jinchuriki asked. "What's the technique?"

"T-the Eig-ght T-trigrams Rot-t-tation techn-nique." She stammered. Hinata started to mentally brace herself as she realized that, thanks to Shino's mentioning it, she would have to talk about her failure to master it in front of _Naruto_, of all people.

"You mean the one where you spin around and send people flying?" Naruto asked her innocently, as he struggled to remember what he knew about it.

"Y-yes but the sp-pining is only part of it. Y-you have to be a-able to exert chakra cor-r-rectly, and o-on top of t-that, do them both-h at the same time, which I ca-an't do yet." The Hyuga slumped her shoulders. "It's s-simply impossible for me to do both things at the same time."

Hinata's description of the technique reminded Naruto of something he was all too familiar with. "Um, Hinata, the whole spin, chakra, and putting it together thing sounds a whole lot like the Rasengan. For my technique, you have to compress a large amount of chakra, spin it all at high speed, then keep it that way long enough to hit someone with it. It's the same way for both moves." The blonde's intelligent-sounding analysis of the two techniques raised a few eyebrows.

"The third parts of both of them are as difficult as hell, too." The jinchuriki continued, much to Kiba's amusement.

"You know," Kakashi mused, "you could be on to something there Naruto. I'll look into it later." Though the copy ninja refused to admit it, the jinchuriki had piped his curiosity, and he really wanted to find out if there was some connection between the two techniques.

"Thanks Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto thanked him. Unlike certain acquaintances of his, Naruto wasn't into research. Letting Kakashi do it was, in his opinion, a much better choice.

"Hey, uh, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata began to ask him. "Since you can do the R-Rasengan now, w-w-well, do you have any t-tips for getting through the l-last p-p-part?" She seriously hoped that he know the one thing she needed get through the third stage. That would turn her bad day into something a whole lot better. After all, not only would she get through a whole conversation with Naruto without fainting (good luck with that), but there was a good chance she could finish learning the sixty-four palms rotation, all of that would be done in a single day!

To her dismay, he only gave her a sympathetic shrug. "Sorry, but I use a shadow clone to help deal with that, which I know for sure you can't do with your technique." He patted her on the head. "Still, you're much better at concentrating then I am, so I'm sure you will succeed, believe it!"

That was the wrong thing to do right then. The disappointment, the pat on the head, and the compliment was too much for the poor Hyuga. She promptly turned tomato-red and fainted. Kiba smacked his head.

"She still has a long way to go." Shino muttered shrewdly as Naruto poked her muttering "Ano…Hinata. Are you ok?"


	4. Back to the Basics

**Hi. I had finished chapter 3 around the end of May, which for me, is the same time the school year ends. Then, my family and I went on vacation the first week of summer, and apparently, my muse was thinking along the same lines. However, luckily for me, my muse returned home minutes after I did, so as soon as I unpacked my stuff, I was able to write this whole chapter in one sitting, which I am very proud of. Also, my sister started editing my story, and she made quite a few improvements, especially with grammar. Ok, time to answer the reviews. **

**To Chewie Cookies: It's just the start… I think.**

**To Dragonman180: Yeah. I found that out shortly before you told me that, but I wasn't able to correct it until after. Thanks though.**

**To Raptor2001: You will find out for yourself.**

**Remember to check the past chapters for repostings. **

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**Training Ground**

The next morning, when Kakashi had just reached the place where he trained Naruto (as usual) when he spotted the recently-promoted chunin, along with several shadow clones, was each holding something small, which they were all hunched over. Once the copy-ninja got a closer look, he noticed that, for some strange reason, the blonde was practicing the Rasengan.

"Morning, Naruto!" Kakashi greeted him. "I thought you were supposed to be learning new techniques, not practicing old ones."

The blonde shrugged. "Well, my talk with Hinata yesterday kinda made me realize I've been doing something wrong." This response puzzled the jonin.

"What have you been doing wrong, Naruto?" He asked. "As far as I can see, you have the Rasengan down flat. You've even invented two versions of it."

"Well, remember the two shortcuts I came up with when I learned the technique? The one where I use my hands to help with rotation, and the fact I need a shadow clone to use it properly?" Naruto asked soberly. Kakashi nodded thoughtfully.

"I have been relying on those, when it would be best if I learned to do the technique without the shortcuts. It would be quicker, and I wouldn't waste any chakra on the shadow clone."

Naruto's unusual mature speech made Kakashi to scratch his head for a few seconds and realize that maybe all of his lectures about chakra hadn't been completely wasted. When he was satisfied with this explanation, the copy-ninja reached into one of his vest pockets and took out, to his student's surprise, several balloons. The silver-haired shinobi walked over to the nearby river and silently filled them with water. He came back and handed one to the silent blonde, and each of his shadow clones

"Well then, back to square one. You know what to do: pop them by rotating the water with your chakra and this time, no hands." He emotionlessly instructed him. "Don't worry, you can do it."

"Yes sir!" Naruto replied smartly. He even saluted. Then, he started doing something he hadn't done in several years. As he trained, Kakashi's thoughts drifted from his Itcha Itcha book and back toward his student. A few months before Naruto had started his ninjitsu training, he had taken his second chunin exam. (That was actually what had convinced Kakashi that Naruto was ready for it). To those who didn't know him, Naruto appeared to be a dropout who was so weak, that even at his age, he was unable to become a chunin. However, to their surprise, the jinchuriki had taken the exam by storm. He already knew the secret of the written segment, so it was no problem for him. His above-average shinobi skills allowed him to pass the second segment with ease, even though he had no teammates helping him, and the same skills had allowed him to make it through the final segment undefeated. By the final round, almost everyone in the stands from Konoha had been cheering his name. Kakashi had rarely been so proud as when Naruto had emerged from the arena, tired but grinning widely. Just thinking about it made the jonin smile, though it was invisible under his mask..

_Naruto can do it. _Kakashi thought. _He has so many things going for him. From his bloodline and his friends, to his awesome potential._ Kakashi's unseen smile widened. _He can do a lot more._

**About an hour later.**

"I popped it! I popped it!" One of the clones called out. The others had already turned to look at him when his balloon had burst loudly.

"Good, Naruto." Kakashi congratulated him tonelessly, without looking up from his book.. "Now, release the clones, and compile what you learned."

Eagerly, the jinchuriki did as he was told, and sat down for a few minutes to catch his breath, and to review what he had done. The clone that had succeeded had started with the basic ring-shaped spin he had known for years, but as he got used to it, he added another ring, and another, connecting them into one current as he made them, until it had gotten enough rings, and reached the required speed. Once it did, the balloon popped instantly. Naruto concluded he needed to reach the needed rotation speed and amount a lot faster to truly have passed the first step without cheating.

Once he was done thinking, Naruto stood back up and recreated his clones, minus one since he was down one balloon. Thirty seconds after he restarted, another loud pop was heard, which was quickly followed by another one.

"RECOMPILE!" Kakashi barked, sounding much like a drill sergeant this time. Naruto released his jutsu once again without hesitation, and stood there for a few seconds. Then, for the third time, the blonde made more clones. This time, it took less than five seconds, and all the balloons popped, almost in unison. A happy Naruto grinned as he released the clones.

"Will that do, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked his instructor cheerfully. His seemingly mature image disintegrated during that moment as he struck a pose. Kakashi once again, reached into one of his vest pockets and took out a water bottle, which he tossed at his student, who caught it in one hand

"Great job, Naruto. You finished the first step properly in record time-" The copy-ninja began to tell the jinchuriki.

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei. For the water bottle, I mean." Naruto interrupted him sort-of jokingly.

"-with my superb training method, of course." The disgruntled shinobi finished under his breath. _Sometimes Naruto can go from serious and cool to annoying in record time._

"What did you say, Kakashi-sensei?" Asked the blonde, who thought he had heard his sensei say something, as he sat down in some shade.

"Nothing, Naruto." He replied with a sigh.

About twenty minutes later, the jinchruiki stood back up, and informed his silver-haired instructor that he was ready to continue training.

"Alright, let's go." Kakashi replied. He silently was glad he was wearing his mask, it just wasn't his style to show this much emotion.


	5. Animal I will Become

**Hey everyone! I'm surprised how much attention my story has gotten. Alright, this is an important chapter. It also has a bit of a dark theme. Sorry about that, but it's necessary. I've also started to add quotes to some of the chapters in this story; you might want to check previous chapters just in case.**

**To GaritytheWizard: I hope so.**

**To Chewie Cookies: Laughs in unison**

**To Dragonman 180: Neither can I.**

**To: Kagehana: For the record, I try to update every Monday.**

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_They say that pushing your body to its limits brings out the best in you. That may be true, but that's not always the only thing that comes out. _– Me (Just ask my sister)

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**Naruto's Apartment**

Naruto was totally spent. Groaning, he reached into his jacket, fumbled around until he found his key, and used it to unlock his door. The last of the said tasks was probably the most difficult, since his hand was shaking so badly that it took him several tries to fit it in correctly. As soon as he opened it, the blonde dragged himself into bed.

He lay there panting for about ten minutes before he felt like he could survive a trip to the refrigerator. With slight difficulty, he opened it and removed a chilled bottle of water. After impatiently unscrewing the cap, he quickly drank the bottle's contents. Smiling to himself in relief, the jinchuriki wiped his mouth off while he refilled the bottle at the sink with the other. When he was done with both tasks, he returned the bottle to its usual spot on the refrigerator door.

Naruto was surprised by how drained he felt. When he first started learned the third stage of the Rasengan, when he was traveling with Jaraiya (back when they were looking for Tunade), he hadn't been put under such intense methods. Sure, he had collapsed at one point, but that was after training for eighteen hours without a break.

Kakashi had been training him with his shadow-clone method for a while now, but since the third part of the training would take much longer than the others, he had insisted having _one hundred and fifty _shadow clones simultaneously deployed. Ordinarily that wasn't all that hard, but since each clone was repeatedly exerting the amount needed to use the Rasengan, whether it failed or not. Naruto had made progress, but not anywhere near as much as he had hoped. He hadn't felt this tired since he invented the Rasenshuriken. Scowling, he stumbled back in the direction of his bed. He had just fallen onto his destination when he realized he was not alone.

Moving on instinct alone, Naruto's hand went for his kunai pouch with much more speed than he should have been able to use. He was about grab one of his sharp knives when he realized his actions were pointless. Groaning, he closed the pouch and shifted into a more comfortable position.

"What do you want this time, you stinking fox," he groaned, his voice dripping with as much malice as he could summon.

"**For you to get a brain, you arrogant child, if you keep talking out loud.**" A twisted, raspy voice, which couldn't have come from any human throat, replied.

"What is that supposed to mean?!" Naruto asked it angrily. He hated that damn voice almost as much as the thing as he hated the thing that made it.

"**It **_**means**_** that if you keep talking out loud like that, someone might overhear and start asking questions.**" The voice responded haughtily. Naruto got even more pissed. The Kyubi was right. If a neighbor, or almost anyone else for that matter, heard Naruto talking to himself, it would put him in a very sticky situation. It was much safer for the two of them to converse with thoughts and thoughts alone.

"_Fine, but don't think you can push me around_." He replied belligerently. "_Now seriously, say what you want or stop bothering me. I'm _tired_._"

"**When you are tired is the only time we can talk like this, unless something is about to kill you.**" The Kyubi explained. He sounded like he was just as annoyed with his container as his container was with him. "**Anyways, why do you keep wasting time here? You have enemies to kill! All of this… playing around is getting you nowhere!**"

"_Stop playing games, Kyubi! We both know what will happen if I do. You just want to force me to break the seal, don't you? As soon as I do, you'll just turn around and destroy Konoha!_"

"**The seal is going to break regardless. Your pointless actions are just delaying the inevitable. If you do it my way, at least your enemies will be destroyed first!**" The Kyubi's ranting puzzled Naruto.

"_What do you mean, 'delaying the inevitable'? The seal won't just break on its own."_ Unfortunately, Naruto's bravado was only met with sick amusement.

"**Are you saying you haven't figured it out yet? Every time you borrow my strength, and as time passes, the seal weakens a bit. You're just a timed, exploding tag, and your actions just shorten the time before you explode.**" With this announcement, the bjuu started laughing manically. He left Naruto laying there with his eyes open in shock and fear. At first Naruto refused to believe this, but as he thought about it, it made more and more sense.

For example, the first time he had used the Kyubi's chakra, the situation was at its worst. His best friend was apparently dead, he was completely out of chakra, and he would have died ten seconds later. Now, it just kept getting easier and easier to set it off. The only thing that could explain it was a weakening in the seal.

"**To be honest, I'm surprised that neither that joke of a leader, or the white-haired rodent told you about it. They probably figured it out years ago.**" The Kyubi taunted him. "**Even they are at least smart enough to figure it out, and they don't even have a front-row seat to it. **_**You **_**should have realized it even before they did.**" With that, the feeling of the monster's presence vanished, Leaving Naruto with a deceptive feeling of privacy.

This conversation left Naruto with too much information for him to take in. He tossed and turned for hours in his bed, even though he wasn't asleep. He completely forgot about taking a shower, or even eating lunch or dinner. Finally, he fell asleep shortly after eleven, leaving him in thankfully dreamless rest.

**The Next Morning**

When Naruto woke up, only his body felt better than before. The feelings of despair that had plagued him yesterday had become feelings of depression. Naruto changed into clean clothes quietly, without his usual enthusiasm.

"I need to talk to someone about this," he muttered.


	6. Aftermath

**Hi. Let's see how Naruto Reacts.**

**To Dragonman180: Tell me about it.**

**To FirstBlush: Thats... good to know.**

**To Chewie Cookies: He's supposed to. In other stories, I've noticed he ends up as Naruto's friend. I think many of us forget he's evil distructive creature that juggernauts everything for the heck of it.**

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_I walk this lonely road_

_The only one that I have ever known_

_Don't know where it goes_

_But it's something mean _

_And I walk alone _- "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" By Greenday

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**Training Ground**

Kakashi was confused. Naruto was never late to training. In fact, he was usually the first one there. One of his first thoughts on this situation was: _Oh Shit. I was early! My reputation is ruined_.

After a little bit more waiting, the copy ninja's pupil finally showed up. However, he wasn't himself. His head was slumped, his hands were in his pockets, and his expression was downcast. This worried Kakashi even more.

"What's wrong Naruto? Did you get lost on the road of life?" He asked jokingly. Oddly, it had no affect whatsoever on Naruto.

"I had a little talk with _him_," Naruto replied, "about the seal."

It took a moment for his mentor to realize what he was talking about, but once he did, Kakashi's eye looked down in what could only be guilt.

"What did he tell you?" The Jonin asked him, dropping his humorous attitude for a more serious one. "Please be specific." Unenthusiastically, he did as he was told, confirming Kakashi's fears.

"Did you know Kakashi-sensei? He said you probably did." Naruto asked him sadly. The silver haired shinobi paused for a few seconds before answering.

"Jairaya-sama… told us this was the case." He admitted soberly. "He came to that conclusion during your training with him, and when the two of you returned, he told us."

Naruto was dumbfounded. "Why didn't you tell me Kakashi-sensei?" He asked his teacher angrily. "Why was I the only person who wasn't told?!"

"He asked us not to tell you." He explained. "Jairaya-sama didn't say why, only that it was for the best."

Naruto quickly went from angry back to depressed. He had always thought of Jairiya as "the pervey sage" most of the time, when that was only one side of Jairiya's personality. All the things he taught Naruto had changed his opinion of the old man, but not much. When he had discovered he had gone up alone against Pain, he was shocked by the toad-sage's bravery and determination, the traits he rarely revealed. (Well, unless you count his risky research methods as "brave.")

"If he ever regains consciousness, you can ask him why." Kakashi continued. "However, right now, he is in no condition to answer your questions." Naruto was silent for a few moments.

"Ano, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked him. "Since the guy I need is in a coma, may I at least talk it over with Granny Tsunade? She knows him better than anyone else. Doesn't she?"

"Anyone alive." Kakashi corrected his pupil. "I heard he got along a lot better with the Third than anyone else."

"Well, can we?" The Jinchuriki asked him again. "I don't think I can get anything done until I do."

"Fine Naruto, if she can spare the time. However, between paperwork, Akatski, and sake, she may not have time." He replied. "I guess you do deserve a talk though, at the very least."

With a nod, the pair started walking in the direction of the Hokage's office.

**Streets of Konoha**

That morning, Hinata and Neji were on their way to get groceries. Hiashi would have done it, but he had an important meeting with a group of council elders, so Hinata had offered to do it herself. Hiashi agreed, but asked Neji to go along too, for some reason. So far though, he wasn't much help.

"Ano, where is the store again?" He asked. Neji was quite embarrassed by the whole thing. He hadn't gone on a grocery trip in years, so he was next to clueless about what to do.

"It's this way, Neji-kun." Hinata replied politely. She knew that even though Neji was a genius in combat, he was sorely lacking in several other areas, such as shopping. She tried to help him when she could, and tried not to make a big issue of it, but she had little success in the former.

Just then, Naruto and Kakashi walked right by them. At first Hinata was going to say hi to them, when she saw the serious expression on the blonde's face, which was somehow both scared and angry. She realized now was not the time to chat with him, so she held her tongue.

"Did you notice, Neji-kun? Hinata asked her cousin after the sober duo was gone.

"Yes. Naruto was definitely not his usual self." Neji replied. "I think there was more to it than that though."

"What do you mean?" The heiress asked him. "Did you notice something else?"

"I did. Take a look at where they were going." Neji pointed at a somewhat distant building. It was the Hokage building.

"Whatever was troubling them may or may not be serious enough to report to Hokage-sama." He answered her soberly. "There's no way that can be good news."

"I hope nothing happened to Naruto-kun or Kakashi-sama." Hinata said wistfully.

**Hokage Building**

Tsunade was in the middle of an epic battle with a battalion of paperwork, when Shizune interrupted.

"What do you want Shizune?" The Hokage growled fiercely at her loyal assistant.

"Tsunade-sama," she began, "Kakashi-sama and Naruto-kun wish to speak with you. They say it's kind of important."

Tsunade groaned audibly. _Why did they have to come now? Don't they have training or something to do?_

"Fine, send them in Shizune." She instructed her briskly. "This better be good.

With that, the assistant opened the door and admitted the two of them. Tsunade noticed the change in the two of them almost immediately.

"What is it, you two?" Tsunade barked. "Make it snappy. I don't exactly have all day."

Kakashi focused his remaining eye meaningfully at Shizune, something the fifth Hokage understood too well.

"Shizune, please leave us," Tunade commanded her crisply. After her assistant's eyes looked downward for a few seconds, she did as she was told.

The medical ninja sighed. The two of them simply hadn't made up after that time. Shizune had reported some of Tsunade's more sensitive decisions and plans to the more conservative elders of Konoha. This had led to a number of problems and arguments between them. In the end, Tsunade decided to simply bar her once-trusted assistant from any meetings concerning Naruto or Akatski that she could. It had only widened the rift between them, but she had no choice. She knew that many of the elders wanted to see Naruto executed, stripped of his status as a shinobi, or even handed over to Akatski as part of a peace agreement. Something Tsunade could neither stand nor afford.

"Now then, what's the problem?" Tsunade asked again, this time with a more mellow-sounding voice.


	7. The Hokage

**Sorry this is a day late. My computer was having internet problems. Anyways. Again, Wow. A Jinchuriki's Fate has reached 1812 hits. Thanks everyone! I know you are probably all been wondering how this is going to turn out. Now, as for reviews...**

**To dragonman180: Yeah. I was so suprised when I saw that episode. I knew her's and Tunade's opinions differed on a number of things, but that was going too far.**

**To Chewie Cookies: Maybe she will and maybe she won't.**

**To GraityTheWizard: Thanks.**

**To Bumblemark: Thanks for the heads up about my spelling error. I need to stop making those. As for NaruHina fluff, I'm getting to it. **

* * *

**The Hokage's Office**

"Now then, what's the problem?" Tsunade asked the somber pair.

"You see Hokage-sama," Kakashi began. "Naruto had a little talk with…"

"I had a talk with it, Granny Tsunade." Naruto finished.

Tsunade looked up a little too quickly. She didn't even make any comments about Naruto's disrespectful nickname as she usually did.

"What did the two of you talk about?" Tsunade asked him, trying to keep as calm as possible. "Was it something I should know?"

"Let's just say the damn bjuu confirmed Jairaya's hypothesis." Kakashi told her seriously. The fifth Hokage stared at the copy ninja.

"Shit," was all she could say immediately. "Why did he say it _now_, of all times?"

"Naruto's training is why." The silver-haired shinobi replied simply. "According to Naruto, they can only communicate in a life-or-death situation, or if he is really tired. The Kyubi saw an opportunity to try and convince Naruto to do what he wanted him to do, and used it against him."

Tsunade took a minute to calm down. (And say a few more curse words)

"Shizune!" The fifth Hokage yelled when she was done. About ten seconds later, the raven-haired assistant opened the door and stuck her head into the room.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" She asked meekly. "Is there anything you need me to do?"

"As a matter of fact, there is, surprisingly enough." She growled at her. With that, Tsunade opened one of her desk drawers and removed a stack of papers.

"Aren't those _last_ month's medical reports?" Shizune asked her incredulously. "Why haven't they been filed yet?"

"I haven't found the time to do it myself yet." She scowled. "I need you to take care of them for me. There's a lot of them, so get Sakura to lend a hand if you need to."

After bowing stiffly, the assistant left to follow her orders.

"Are you _really_ that behind far Hokage-sama" the silver- haired shinobi said as he cocked his head.

"You know that's not true." Tsunade growled at him. "Shizune might start eavesdropping, so having an errand for her to run when I talk about something important is much safer, as much as I hate doing it." She turned back toward the blonde.

"So, you know that the seal is weakening, do you?" She asked him sympathetically. "I'm sorry for not telling you about it, but as Kakashi may have already told you, Jairaya made us promise not to tell you in exchange for the information." Naruto nodded.

"Kakashi-sensei told me about that." Naruto replied. "He also said you're the one most likely to know _why_ he did that."

Tsunade sighed. She could tell it was going to be one of _those _talks. They were painful to be in and rarely ever ended on a positive note.

"I can't say with any certainty what goes on inside Jairaya's head, except for his research." She replied.

Kakashi snorted, but was quickly silenced by Naruto's glare.

"So, in other words, you have no idea." The Jinchuriki pressed.

"Unfortunately, yes." The Hokage admitted. "He never really did anything seriously until Orochimaru left. And as you may know, he followed him shortly after that. What drives his serious side, besides our traitorous teammate, is something I don't know. Sorry I'm not any help."

"It's alright Granny Tsunade" the Chunin replied. With that, Naruto departed, showing little emotion.

"We need to do something about Naruto." Tunade muttered. "Something to distract him, maybe even cheer him up some."

"How about a mission Hokage-sama?" The silver-haired shinobi suggested. "He's done nothing but train for a while now. A chance to get some work in may be just what he needs. Besides, I don't know how much money he has left."

"That sounds like a good idea to me, Kakashi." Tsunade agreed. "Though your last reason is incorrect. You know Minato's will better than I do."

What Tsunade was referring to was the will Minato had drawn up during the Kyubi's attack. Unlike what most people would have done in his position, the fourth Hokage had thought ahead. He had made clear that everything would go to Naruto, but when, how, and all the other details would be decided by his replacement, who would still be alive and therefore able to come up with something that would work in whatever the situation would be.

The seedier members of the Konoha council of elders had wanted to "donate it to the village" of course, but fortunately, that didn't happen.

The third had decided that, since Naruto was to grow up not knowing his parent's identities, the fourth's numerous assets would be kept under lock and key. Although, until Naruto became a Genin and able to support himself, he would be issued an 'allowance' of sorts that he would be able to live off of.

"He doesn't know about that, remember?" The copy-ninja reminded her.

"Of course he doesn't." Tsunade growled. "Fine, I'll dig up a B-rank for you. He will just complain if I give him a C-rank."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Kakashi thanked her respectfully.

"There's a snag, though." Tsunade added. "You won't be going on it."

"Why?" Kakashi asked startled.

"I need you to fill in for Kurenai. As you know, she's too far into pregnancy to go on missions. However, I have another mission that requires her team's specialized skills, but I also need someone else to fill in as the team's captain. Your team is the only one with two captians, and I need Tenzo to stay with Naruto, so it's up to you."

"Understood." Kakashi replied.

"Very well than. Please bring the active members of team Kurenai here, so we can start the briefing.


	8. The Hyuga Compoud

**Hello everyone. I have another bad announcement. I will probably not be uploading any new chapters for the next three weeks. I am sorry about this. You see, I need this next week to get ready for an overnight camp in North Carolina that I'm going to, which will last for two weeks. It's something I look forward to going to every year, but there arn't any computers there. (It's one of those back-to-nature camps) I'll try to update when I get back. Again, I'm sorry. On a happier note, the story has reached OVER 2000 HITS!! (2335 to be exact). Thank you all for your support. It really gives me this warm feeling inside. (Or is that from the chili I just ate?) Anyways, on to the reviews!**

**To bumblemark: Again, I'm getting to it. Don't worry. I am an avid NaruHina fan. I just think that most writers just make the relationship between them form too quickly, and spend the rest of the story focused on other things.**

**To Dragonman180: I hope the missions don't disappoint you. As for Minato's stuff, just wait and see.**

**To Namikazelil: Thanks. **

**Streets of Konoha**

Unfortunately for Kakashi, the Hokage had neglected to tell him where the members of Kurenai's team lived. This put him in quite a predicament. Being male, there was no way he could go back and ask for directions. It would be too embarrassing. He did consider asking Kurenai, but he didn't know where she lived either.

After thinking about it for a few minutes, the copy-ninja decided on a course of action. He knew from Hinata's and Naruto's conversation two days ago that the female member of the team would be training around now, so he would probably find her at the Hyuga Compound. Although he didn't know where that was either, he knew it would be in the rich part of town, where most of the higher clans and other upper-class residents of Konoha lived. Since the Hyuga clan were one of Konoha's best, their compound would probably stand out more than the others.

Grinning at his own resourcefulness, Kakashi headed toward his destination.

**Hyuga Compound**

After about a half hour of searching, the copy-ninja found where he was looking for. It was surprisingly plain compared to some of the other clan's living spaces. He had actually missed it when he first walked by it. It would have taken even longer to find if he hadn't realized the two guards at the entrance possessed the Hyuga's near pupil-less eyes.

_Probably branch family members._ Kakashi thought. Calmly, the silver-haired shinobi strolled up to the gate.

"Excuse me sir, do you have an appointment?" The first of the two guards asked.

"No, but-," Kakashi began.

"No buts." The guard interrupted him. "If you don't have an appointment, than I'm afraid you can't enter."

"I'm here under orders from the Hokage." He protested. "Miss Hinata's team is about to be sent on a mission-,"

The annoying guard looked down his nose at the jonin. "We'll make sure to give her the message. Now leave the premises!"

"I'm supposed to collect her and her teammates then report back for the briefing." Kakashi growled. He hated dealing with these kinds of people.

The second guard, who hadn't said anything yet, spoke up.

"Let him pass, brother." He told his companion. "It's Kakashi, the copy ninja."

Unfortunately, he didn't believe him.

"Don't make me laugh." The first guard replied in disbelief. "This guy, Kakashi? This bum probably isn't even a jonin!"

Obviously, this guy had a pretty stiff-necked personality, and something about the silver-haired shinobi's laid back personality irked him.

"He's just some nobody!" He said angrily. "Seriously, who does he think he is?"

"I'm Kakashi Hatake." He told them calmly. The branch family members whirled around in surprise. Somehow, he had gotten behind them while they were arguing!

"Told you." The second guard said, chuckling. Unfortunately, the second guard ignored his comrade.

"Intruder!" He cried. With that, he charged the copy-ninja, only to collapse a second later, caught in a sharingan-caused genjutsu.

"Sorry about that!" He apologized, as he re-veiled his eye. The sharingan was still spinning when he did, giving the silver-haired shinobi an eerie appearance. The second guard shrugged.

"It's okay." He said. "My younger brother here can be quite full of himself." He opened the door, motioning to someone inside. He returned with two more guards. After a brief explanation, they carried the unconscious guard inside, and took his and his brother's spots outside the gate.

"That must be convenient." Kakashi commented. He was impressed by the Hyuga's efficiency.

"It gets us out of troublesome situations from time to time." The guard replied modestly. "I'll escort you to Hinata-sama. She and Neji-kun just returned from an errand about ten minutes ago, so they're probably training in the courtyard."

With the copy-ninja two steps behind, the guard guided him through the compound. The bland-looking halls were quite confusing. The walls were all painted an unrelenting white and looked the same no matter where they walked. Kakashi had expected decorations, but there were no distinguishing features of any kind.

"How do you find your way around?" He asked his guide. "I can't even tell what part of the house we're in."

Grinning, the Hyuga pointed to his face, showing that he had activated his Byakugon. Kakashi whistled in admiration. The compound was just an elaborate maze. No one without the Hyuga clan's kekkei genkai would be able to navigate the place without a guide.

"Hiashi-sama renovated the place after the kidnapping incident that led to Hizashi-san's death." The guard explained. "He wanted to make sure it wouldn't happen again."

"Impressive." Kakashi replied. "Did Hiashi-sama design the layout?"

The guard nodded. "He did, so no one else has the blue print. The only problem is the complaints he gets from the kids who can't use the Byakugon yet, since they need adults to help them find the bathroom."

"I guess privacy is a privilege in the Hyuga compound." The copy-ninja commented. "That probably stinks."

"You have _no_ idea." The guard told him.

The two of them probably would have talked more, but they had just reached the court yard. As usual, Hiashi and Neji were off to the side observing as Hinata was in the center of the yard practicing. The young Hyuga gulped nervously as she, once again, attempted to use Rotation.

At first, it looked like she was successful, but in seconds, Kakashi was proved otherwise. The released chakra only protected half of her body. The heiress promptly lost her balance and fell. Hiashi sighed.

"Better, I guess. One-hundred and Eighty degrees isn't enough, but it's a definite improvement to last time."

"Arigato father." Hinata replied. She had just stood back up and dusted herself off, when the three of them noticed Kakashi.

"Oh, right." He said sheepishly. The Sharingan user told them why he was there.

"I see." The head of the Hyuga clan said coolly. "Hinata, please retrieve whatever you need for a mission."

"We'll meet at the entrance." Kakashi told her. With that, Hinata bowed and went inside. Neji followed her.

"I'll lead you back." The guard said.

Back at the Entrance

"Do you have everything you need?" Kakashi asked the heiress once she arrived.

Hinata nodded, then noticed the still-sleeping guard.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about him." The copy-ninja explained. "He didn't want to let me in, or believe I'm me, so I kind of genjutsued him. Speaking of which, it's about time I freed him."

With that, Kakashi freed him. Before he could do anything else, the stubborn guard jumped up and started spouting wild accusations. Rolling his eyes, the jonin got behind him again and gagged him with a bandage.

"That reminds me." The copy-ninja muttered. Without missing a beat, Kakashi performed the Summoning jutsu. When the resulting smoke dissapitated, the nin-dog Pakkun was revealed.

"You summoned me?" The nin-dog inquired. "What is it this time, Kakashi?"

"I need you to deliver a message to Kurenai." He told him. He explained the situation, for the guard's benefit as well as Pakkun's. Hopefully, it would cut down on the number of times Kakashi would have to deal with him.

"Any problems?" The silver-haired shinobi asked the dog when he was done.

"Yeah, could you give me directions?" Pakkun asked. Kakashi could only stare dumbly at the animal summon.

"Can't you just smell her out or something? You've met her before!"

"It's hard to do with so many different humans in the area." He explained. "Unless she's been here within a day or so, smells start to blend, when there's so many of them in the area."

Grumbling, the disgruntled shinobi turned to Hinata. Realizing what the jonin was as clueless as his dog, she gave them the needed instructions.

"Arigato." The dog thanked her. With that, the nin-dog shot off, leaving a dust cloud trailing behind him.

"Shall we go find your teammates?" Kakashi asked her.

"Hai!" Hinata replied.


	9. Hold Note

Ok

Ok. I just got back from camp (literally less than half an hour ago). I got some ideas, but not as much as I had hoped. Unfortunately, I have to put the story on hold for a number of reasons, which are listed below.

The evil editor (a.k.a. my sister) has gone on a rampage. You see, when she started editing my story, she hadn't read all that much of Naruto. (anime or manga) She had started reading it about a year ago and lost interest. However, since I was at camp for two weeks, she had a lot more computer time. So, she spent her time reading Naruto manga. Seeing how I've been trying to get her to do that for ages now, I can't complain all that much, yet. However, she's now ranting on about a bunch of personality inconsistencies, plot holes, etc. (ex. Neji and Hinata going grocery shopping rather than a servant) so she wants the two of us to do some major over haul.

School's going to start in less than a month and I'm behind on summer home work. I am probably going to spend the rest of my summer playing catch up. (Not to mention I'm planning to start a facebook account so I can stay in contact with the friends I made at camp). Basically, I'm not going to have the time.

There you go. Hopefully, when I start up again, the planned improvements will make the story a whole lot better. (It better be, or I am going to do something really mean to my sister.) Sorry.


End file.
